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Daily Devotions

James

James 
Day 
Day 54

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."

Text: James 4:8

THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING CHILDREN OF GOD

What a great privilege it is to be called children of God! We must never take for granted God’s gift to us that we are born again and called sons and daughters of God!

DRAWING NEAR TO GOD

It should be natural that children of God would desire to be close to God the Father. Yet, the sad reality is that not many are actually close to God.

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands, you sinners;
and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
James 4:8

1. “Draw near to God”

a) This word must be read as a very strong word from James.
b) It is nothing short of being an imperative!
c) Why should children of God be far from their Heavenly Father?
d) It is sin that draws people apart from God!

2. “And He will draw near to you”

a) God requires repentance from sin.
b) If there is no genuine effort to draw near to God, then there will be no reciprocation.
c) Only if the prodigal son returns to his father would there be a true reconciliation.

3. Dealing with sin correctly

a) James addressed the problem forthrightly.
b) He speaks to his erring readers as “sinners”.

4. The issues at hand

a) “Cleanse your hands”
i) Cleansing must be sought.
ii) The “hands” represent the whole person.
b) “And purify your hearts”
i) The conjunction “and” connects both the hands and heart.
ii) Cleansing and purification go together.
c) “You double-minded”

This was the problem that James had addressed earlier. (The problem of being “double-minded” was mentioned in James 1:8). It was highlighted in this text too. There must not be a vacillation of the soul when seeking God in prayer! The double-minded person will never receive an answer from God!